Haaland urges Manchester City to stay united after emphatic Liverpool victory

Erling Haaland says Manchester City’s 3-0 victory over 10-man Liverpool at Anfield demonstrated the squad’s determination to “stick together” following the club’s guilty verdict over breaches of Premier League financial regulations.

Haaland opened the scoring on Sunday before Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki added further goals, silencing the home support after Liverpool fans repeatedly taunted City over the ruling.

The match was City’s first since an independent commission found the club guilty of breaking more than 100 financial regulations. Manchester City are appealing against the decision, which could result in a substantial points deduction, possible relegation or the removal of their titles.

There was no visible sign that the players had been affected by the controversy as they produced a decisive performance against their old rivals. The result moved City three points clear at the top of the Premier League, although it remains uncertain whether they can sustain a title challenge while the threat of punishment remains.

“Every single person that is part of Man City, and every fan, this is a lovely moment that will stay with us for a long time,” Haaland said.

“It was hard, but we showed amazing character from back to front. So proud of everyone. It’s always tough to come here.

“Important to stay strong mentally, stick together and do what you can do something about and the thing we can do something about is to play good football and fight together. That’s the only thing we can do.”

City were given an advantage shortly before Haaland’s opener when Liverpool midfielder Ryan Gravenberch was sent off after receiving two bookings. Pep Guardiola’s side took control after that dismissal and went on to complete a convincing win.

Haaland said the players had to focus on their performances while the club’s Abu Dhabi-based owners dealt with the legal consequences of the commission’s findings.

“You want to win games, it’s as simple as that. Perform well, play good football and win games. This was a mental battle,” he said.

“Proud that we managed to stick together, we are mentally strong. Plenty of games coming up so time to recover and go again.”

City midfielder Elliot Anderson also made a composed impression in his first experience of the rivalry with Liverpool since joining from Nottingham Forest during the close season.

The England international agreed with Haaland’s assessment of City’s collective response.

“Togetherness, fight, a tough place to come and we stuck together and fought for each other. We’ve showed courage,” Anderson said.

“The atmosphere was more than normal, arriving into Anfield and the first 10 minutes of the game.

“We did well to quieten the crowd. Struggled first half but second we were better and then the goals came.”